Numerous types of shoe racks have been developed for storing shoes in a convenient manner; some of which hold the shoes in a vertical orientation, such as on hoops, pegs or in pouches, while others retain the shoes in a horizontal, side-by-side position, such as on shelving, bars, or a cubby system. These methods for storing shoes are often designed around the physical restraints imposed by the shoe geometry, including width, height, and length. The different variations of shoe racks described in the prior art provide for a dizzying array of styles of shoe racks, each having a different look, a different way of holding or hanging the shoe, and a different method of addressing the physical requirements of the shoes. Some shoe racks are mounted to a wall, some are hung over a door, and still others are provided to free stand, and all provide for a means to store shoes.
The primary problem with conventional shoe racks is their inability to have sufficient flexibility or interchangeability as the size and number of shoes required to be stored varies. This leads to excessive wasted space or worse yet, certain types of shoes that are not compatible with the shoe rack design. Some types of shoe racks include a surface or mounting on which the bottom of the shoes rest side-by-side in a down-ward, sloped position. Because the number of shoes placed side-by-side is limited by width of the shoes, any variation in shoe height provides for an overall underutilization of space due to the excess space that exists above and below individual pairs of shoes. For shoe racks that hold the shoes on an upside down “U” shaped holder or in pouches, such as are often mounted on the back of a door, the number of shoes which may be held is limited by the number of evenly spaced holders, and furthermore the ability to locate a pair of shoes is hindered by lack of visibility of the tops of the shoes. Other types of shoes racks include shelf, rack, pouch, and cubby systems, and each one has different limitations as to the size, shape, width, length or height of the shoes that it can accommodate. Other problems related to the prior art involve stability of the systems, and inability of the shoe racks to retain shoes in a secure fashion. For example, typical door-mounted styles of hanging shoe racks have a limitation such that when the door is opened, the shoe racks lack the lateral support necessary to keep the shoes from falling or sliding off.
Accordingly, the need exists for an inexpensive hanging or universal shoe rack having the versatility to be mounted in both a vertical and horizontal manner, and which can overcome many of the limitations of the previous art. Shoe racks in the prior art are unable to accommodate the wide variety of shoes including: dress, casual, sports (low-top and high-top), women's high-heel (including those with straps or laced and without a back support), work boots, galoshes, hiking boots, slip-ons, sandals, flip-flops, and specialty shoes. Shoe racks in the prior art are unable to accommodate differences in size and geometry inherent in men's, women's, and children's shoes. Whereas other shoe racks are designed to be mounted to a particular surface, a shoe rack design is required which can be mounted on, but is not limited to, the following locations: a door, a wall, a ceiling, a dresser, a work-bench, and a circular or carousel style of rack system or free-standing shoe display.
The present invention addresses these and other problems associated with the prior art.